The jumpsuit is currently trending

Since the 1930s, when Elsa Schiaparelli designed the jumpsuit for women, this one-piece garment has been a popular choice in women's fashion, appealing to generations young and old due to its versatility. However, its history goes back to 1919, when it was first created for its functionality for parachutists to jump from planes.

The 80s and ‘90s era embraced the jumpsuit in all its glory and could be found in any woman’s wardrobe in a vast array of modernised styles to meet any woman’s style and needs.

While minimalist luxury is the trend, our ethos is unapologetic, eye-catching, detail-oriented designs. KHB by Design women are bold and confident individuals who don’t apologise for owning the room when they walk in with their heads held high and radiating an element of beauty and grace.

So why are jumpsuits or, more specifically, minimalist silent luxury jumpsuits trending

Here are 10 reasons why jumpsuits are much-loved clothing design:

1. Suitable for all body types.

2. Suitable for women of all ages

3. It can be dressed up or dressed down.

4. Comfortable to wear.

5. On trend yet a timeless classic

6. Worn all season

7. It’s a one-stop-shop outfit for effortless styling

8. Boost confidence and ensure empowerment

9. Creates a flawless silhouette

10. Fabric and style permitting, add a blazer, and you have a suit. Wear a shirt or jumper underneath; you you've smart, casual off-duty look.

It’s more than great-looking clothes

Our focus is not only on great designs but also on transforming them into high-quality clothes made with the finest fabrics and utmost craftsmanship. This ensures a flawless finished piece every time.

Creating the Vivian dress. The journey from idea to reality

Inspired by my love for Hollywood glamour and bold contrasting visuals, I did a quick sketch of the idea on a pre-sketched body figure template I bought years ago on Amazon.

At the time I didn’t think much about the fabric, colour or how the garment would be constructed. I just had a drawing of a dress that was in my head that I like the look of. Then I hit a brick wall. I wanted to get my manufacturer to create a sample, but I needed to decide what fabric would be suitable to the design, how do I want the dress to feel against the body, and what would the person wearing the dress be doing while wearing the dress.

What contrasting colours would work well with the dimensions and proportions of the dress? So, I decided to seek to use silk velvet because I associate silk velvet with luxury, glamour, sensuality, opulence, and royalty and therefore it’s a strong, high-quality material. Then my emerald green tartan checked mid-length bodycon dress with a sweetheart neckline, spaghetti straps and ruching stitched detail on both sides came to my mind as a point of reference. I’ve owned this dress for several years, and no matter how many times I wear this dress I always love the feel of the smooth, soft, and plush fabric against my skin, it feels like a second skin, and of course, I feel and look like a million pounds.

Then to get the ball rolling, I needed to get my design illustrated so that my manufacturer could clearly see the design elements of the dress. So, with that said I found a fantastic fashion illustrator on Fiver.com and got him/her to transform my basic design into something more visually appealing in that it added more dimensions to the design rather than the flat drawing I had created.

I have a catalogue of all the fabrics currently supplied by Pongees a long established and reputable fabric supplier in East London, and I started researching more about the composition of velvet fabrics available and during my research to understand the construction of velvet I discovered that it is almost impossible to truly source 100% silk velvet fabric as they are so rare and so expensive to produce and hence why most are produced with a mixture of rayon or viscose. I requested some more swatches of silk velvets from another trusted supplier to compare the quality and construction of the material and colour range. Then I decided to use silk velvet with a composition of viscose and elastane.

After trolling through pages of fabric and without much luck, I decided to seek the help of my fabric supplier Eve. Eve has become my unofficial textile consultant; she has been working in the industry for several years supplying fabrics to anyone from dressmakers, costume designers, fashion brands, and individuals and after our first encounter over a year ago she is familiar with me my way of working and the way my mind works plus she is super friendly and easy to talk to. After explaining my predicament in trying to work out the best fabric to use to construct the straps to achieve the structure, I had envisioned. Eve sends over images of potential fabrics, and then I selected a few fabrics and Eve sent over the swatches.

When I received the swatch, the first fabric I selected didn’t work out, I thought I would get the fabric hand pleated by amazing hand pleating company in Potters Bar, it was sun-ray pleated but the fabric could not hold the weight of the dress, then I had to go back to the drawing board as I could not transmit the image I had in my head into something tangible so I started researching the history of sleeves, I wanted an exaggerated strap and whilst scrolling through the images I came across the solution and with the knowledge and experience of my manufacturer she was able to construct the straps and created the volume and drama I want needed to create with the silhouette of the dress.

The first sample needed rework because although the strap construction was fit for purpose, it was still missing the volume and drama, so after my discussion with my muse and close friend Alma I decided we just needed to make the straps wider and add more volume so that it draws the eyes to the wearer’s face first.

The Story Behind the Brand

I started KHB by Design out of my passion for dressing up. I love getting dressed up; I don’t need many excuses to get fancy. I enjoy the process, so as soon as I have confirmed my attendance at an engagement, like many women I start going through a mental inventory of what is in my wardrobe to wear. But I go one step further I visualise how I wanted to look or what character I want to be. Can anyone else relate to this?

I don’t always have the right outfit in my wardrobe, so I search endlessly online for the dress or clothes that fit the visual I have in my head. Over the years I have customised my clothes or styled my outfit in a way that creates a whole new look; I’ve also found dress patterns that I loved and visualised in a particular colour and got it made to measure by a dressmaker.

After years of doing this and a combination of life-changing experiences during the pandemic, I had a revelation that maybe I could design my own clothes. I studies Fashion Design as Diploma at college later in life, but I couldn’t continue my education as I couldn’t afford to pay for another Degree especially when I was still repaying my previous student loan and taking a huge salary cut if I started a career in Fashion after years in of working in the Finance sector. So, I thought I had given up on that dream, but every few years the passion or desire reignites which was what happened.

It all started with a dream! Yes, you heard right, I dreamt about an old friend of mine and a little girl at my daughter’s nursery; in the dream, I was focused on the details of their clothes, and I complimented the little girl on her beautiful applique detailed dress. After that dream I started reflecting on the joy I felt during my Fashion Design course; this then led me to search through my bedroom looking for all my old college assignments and drawings I had done all those years old, and here we are today, after over a year of ups and downs overcoming fear of not being qualified enough, good enough, fear of rejection, fear of failure. The conquering the challenges faced when starting a new business, especially within such as saturated market like the fashion industry KHB by Design was birthed, and on the 1st November 2022 our website went live; thanks to God, the support of my husband and few close friends (they know who they are), that gave me the safe space to be vulnerable and not hold it against, and my previous social media management company. and I must give a special shout to my good friend and old work colleague Andrew Cronin for creating a visually beautiful website.